DAN BIGGAR: I’m uninterested in Scotland being praised after they win the sq. root of diddly squat yearly – the strain is all on them this weekend and Wales are primed to trigger an upset

Before Wales travelled to Scotland in the 2023 Six Nations, I was particularly annoyed about how much praise their team had been getting compared to mine.

My overriding feeling was that despite winning Grand Slams and Championship titles, as a Welsh side we hadn’t got the credit I thought we deserved.

Scotland, by contrast, were the darlings of the media despite winning the square root of diddly squat. I went into my press conference that week determined to say my piece.

I’ve always hated it when players deliver bland, boring platitudes to journalists. I don’t see the point. I feel it’s important to say what you think and that’s exactly what I did.

‘The pressure is all on them. They are red-hot favourites, the best team in the tournament, so we will see how they go,’ I said of Scotland.

‘We don’t seem to get any credit and other teams seem to get a lot of praise for probably not quite the success we’ve had.

‘If you listen to everyone, we might as well not have bothered catching the flight. We do have a bit of a laugh there are other teams around who get a fair bit of praise without really backing it up.’

I remember walking out of that media briefing and saying to the group of journalists there: ‘Was that enough for you?’ with a bit of a wink and a smile.

I knew my quotes would make big headlines. Even the Wales press officer didn’t say anything!

We ended up getting battered 35-7 in the game in Edinburgh, but I still don’t regret my comments that week. Not one bit. They weren’t even about that match in particular.

My point was wider than just that 80 minutes and referred to a feeling I’d had for a long time about the contrast in attitudes to how Wales and Scotland play and the respective successes they’ve had. I didn’t get any p***taking from the Scottish players for what I’d said before, during or after that year’s game either.

And after it, as Wales players we had to deal with the strike threat for the England match, so everyone quickly forgot about it. Looking back, maybe that’s why I was so keen for the strike to happen because it would have brushed my comments under the carpet even quicker!

I was reminded of what I said pre-Scotland two years ago by watching Adam Jones’ press conference this week. Adam, or ‘Bomb’ as he’s widely known, virtually repeated by words. It was straight out of the Biggar playbook!

‘There’s pressure on Scotland,’ said Bomb, who is a former team-mate of mine and now coaching with Wales.

‘This is probably one of the best sides they’ve ever had, if not the best side they’ve ever had. They’ll be expecting to beat us pretty comfortably at home against a team that’s lost 15 times. There’s a bit of confidence now with us. There’s the feel-good factor. They have got good players, don’t get me wrong. But you can rattle good players.

‘We want to get the monkey off our back. We’re going up there to win. We’ll certainly go up there to put the frighteners on them a bit.’

I absolutely loved those comments. I’m sure Scotland supporters and many other rugby fans will question Bomb saying that when Wales have lost their last 15 matches.

And that’s a fair point. But Bomb is a new addition to the squad for this campaign. He’s not burdened by what’s gone on in the last 18 months as he’s only just arrived.

He’s brought a fresh voice and a new energy which has clearly been well received. And I think what he said is only reflective of the change in mood in the camp after Matt Sherratt took over from Warren Gatland. Matt, who the players call ‘Jockey’, has had a big impact immediately. Wales showed really positive signs in their defeat by Ireland.

And if they can continue on that upward curve, I think they’ve got a really good chance of an upset against Scotland on Saturday. Don’t get me wrong, Scotland should win.

On paper, they are a better side than Wales. Scotland have great players and they play great rugby. But, as I said two years ago, they have a golden generation of players that has won absolutely nothing. This Six Nations has been the same old story for Scotland.

There was a lot expected of them, as has seemed to be the case for the last few years. But now it looks like they’ll finish in midtable once again. Maybe that’s where Scotland have to accept they are. After all, they’ve never won the Six Nations.

Even if they beat Wales, Bomb should stand by what he said, as I have done. And I think with the way Jockey got the team playing against Ireland, Wales have the ability to trouble Scotland with the ball.

I like the fact Jockey has named an unchanged XV. I was blown away by the statistic I read that it’s the first time that’s happened in back-to-back Tests for Wales since 2019. I guess that shows the upheaval Welsh rugby has been dealing with.

Scotland really like to attack. They outscored England three tries to one and got to the edges regularly. But they still lost. If they don’t beat Wales, I think Gregor Townsend will be in trouble – maybe he’s taken Scotland as far as he can.

For Wales, there is a lot of improvement still to come. Having Dewi Lake back from injury and on the bench to provide some impetus is also a big boost for them. To me, it’s great that this game has a bit of hype about it.

That’s what we want in rugby! We’ve got to remember the sport is in the entertainment business. What I said in 2023 helped take the build-up to that game up a notch, and Bomb has done the same this year. The sport needs that. International rugby is such a brilliant spectacle and a bit of spice around it only adds to the whole equation.

It’s something Warren Gatland used to do really well in his first spell with Wales. He’d use the media to get his message across and play a few mind games. His aim was to put his team on the front foot and gain an advantage. If he could do that through the press – and in a respectful way – then why wouldn’t he? It’s an important part of the game.

That’s why I think Eddie Jones is great. He does the same thing. And I think that’s why Bomb said what he said this week. His comments were also entirely accurate in that all the pressure is on Scotland. And Wales are quietly confident of an upset.

It’s all set up for an intriguing and entertaining game. It’s one I’m looking forward to. Wales have a very good opportunity to do something special.

SCOTLAND: Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham, Huw Jones, Tom Jordan, Duhan van der Merwe; Finn Russell (co-capt), Ben White; Pierre Schoeman, Dave Cherry, Zander Fagerson, Jonny Gray, Grant Gilchrist, Jamie Ritchie, Rory Darge (co-capt), Jack Dempsey. 

Replacements: Ewan Ashman, Rory Sutherland, Will Hurd, Gregor Brown, Matt Fagerson, George Horne, Stafford McDowall, Kyle Rowe.

WALES: Blair Murray; Tom Rogers, Max Llewellyn, Ben Thomas, Ellis Mee; Gareth Anscombe, Tomos Williams; Nicky Smith, Elliot Dee, WillGriff John, Will Rowlands, Dafydd Jenkins, Jac Morgan (capt), Tommy Reffell, Taulupe Faletau.

Replacements: Dewi Lake, Gareth Thomas, Keiron Assiratti, Teddy Williams, Aaron Wainwright, Rhodri Williams, Jarrod Evans, Joe Roberts.

Referee: Andrea Piardi (Italy). Kick-off: Saturday 4.45pm, Murrayfield. TV: BBC1.